5 Things to Do in London
In London the iconic historic landmarks take center stage, with four UNESCO World Heritage Sites beckoning you to explore. They are the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, Maritime Greenwich and the Kew Royal Botanic Gardens.
Beyond visiting these historic sites, there is a long list of things to do in London. To make travel planning easier, we narrowed the list to five.
Before we get to the list here are 5 travel tips:
1. London has
six airports and all of these airports are less than 50 miles from the city center.
2. It is served by almost every known airline in the world and according to
Visit London, over 300 destinations have direct links to the city.
3.
$1 is about 0.6375 GBP (British Pound).
4. For convenience and to save time and money, get
Visitor Oyster Cards and Travelcards for London’s public transportation.
5.
List of hotels in London.
One: Visit London Museums
The Museum Mile from Euston Road to the River Thames has 13 world-class museums and galleries. From the Rosetta Stone at the British Museum, the impressionist art collection at the Courtauld Gallery, to the rare editions and manuscripts at the Charles Dickens Museum, you will have endless miles of iconic items from around the world to discover.
The museums:
The British Library
British Museum
Brunei Gallery, SOAS
The Dickens Museum
The Courtauld Gallery
The Foundling Museum
Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons
The Library and Museum of Freemasonry
London Transport Museum
Royal Opera House
Sir John Soane’s Museum
UCL Museum and Collections
Wellcome Collection
All museums listed above have free admission except the Dickens Museum, The Courtauld Gallery, The Foundling Museum and London Transport Museum. If you have time for only one museum, we recommend the British Museum.
Information:
Museum Mile
Two: Visit London Palaces
At 11:30 am from April until the end of July and on alternate days for the rest of the year (weather permitting), visitors are invited to witness the Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace. This 45-minute ceremony has been a tradition since 1660.
Buckingham Palace is the Queen’s London residence and a working royal palace in London. You can join an exclusive tour with a guide to view the staterooms filled with Royal Collections of paintings, furniture and more.
Also visit six historic royal palaces with over a thousand years of history like Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Banqueting House, Kensington Palace and Kew Palace.
Information:
Changing the Guard schedule
Historic Royal Palaces
Three: Visit Art Galleries
Here is a list of 11 art galleries in London (list from Visit London):
Tate Modern
Tate Britain
Saatchi Gallery
National Gallery
Somerset House
Serpentine Gallery
Royal Academy of Arts
National Portrait Gallery
Hayward Gallery
Barbican Gallery
White Chapel Gallery
If you have time for only one gallery, we recommend Tate Modern. Tate Modern is Britain’s national museum of modern and contemporary art. Located at the former Bankside Power Station, it houses works by Cezanne, Matisse, Picasso, Rothko, Dali, Pollock, Warhol and more.
The admission is free at the Tate Modern.
Four: Afternoon tea
An afternoon tea experience is a must when visiting London. There are plenty of tearooms offering traditional tea, unusual afternoon tea, Gentlemen’s afternoon tea and cheap afternoon tea.
Find out if your hotel offers afternoon tea. If not, you can take an afternoon tea cruise on River Thames or at the Fortnum & Mason Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon.
Five: Visit Borough Market
Borough Market can be traced back to the 11th century. Located on Southwark Street, close to London Bridge, it was the place where traders sold grain, fish, vegetables and livestock. When the traders relocated in the 13th century, it became a place for what it is today.
This is the place for cooked food, fresh fruits, baked goods, British and international produce. Go for the street food, famous British meat pies and fish and chips.
Information:
Borough Market
Have you been to London? What are your favorite things to do?
